Slain Minn. teens may be linked to nearby burglary

Investigators are trying to determine whether the teenage cousins shot and killed during an alleged home burglary in Little Falls last week committed a similar crime hours earlier.

Haile Kifer, 18, and Nick Brady, 17, were killed Thanksgiving Day by Byron Smith, who says they broke into his house.

A Minneapolis Star Tribune report quotes Morrison County Sheriff Michel Wetzel as saying there are "preliminary indications" that Kifer and Brady burglarized a nearby home.

Investigators are studying the red Mitsubishi Eclipse that Brady was driving. Authorities say the same car had been seen in the driveway of a home that had been robbed of coins and medication while the owner was overseas.

Wetzel says before the burglary was discovered, deputies questioned Brady near the car and let him go.

Copyright 2012 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.